The wind blew a gale on Sunday morning as we exited our car in the church parking lot. Ron and I walk in together hand in hand every week – intentionally holding hands. It’s become a Sunday morning ritual.
Introduction …
We saw a gentleman we didn’t know across the parking lot, so we slowed a bit for him to catch up with us.
He said, “It looks like you know where you are going. I will follow you.”
I used that opening to ask if he was new to our church, and he said yes. We asked him what brought him there today.
He said, “I live nearby, and one day I was looking for a particular church. I was lost, and unlike most men, I stopped to ask directions. I stopped where I saw a family playing outside. They were friendly and eagerly told me about their church. I wrote down their names and the church name and decided to visit.”
He showed me his notebook, where he had written the family names of the ones that told him about our church. It was the same family we share a row with every Sunday – it seemed particularly serendipitous.
So we walked the gentleman into church, introduced him to the pastoral staff, and invited him to sit with us.
A side note …
In the meanwhile, he shared that he had lost his wife recently. They had been married for 61 years. And he also said he was a 6th generation Church of Christ.
A side note: I noticed that the gentleman’s collar was askew. So when he said he had lost his wife recently, compassion welled up, and I blurted out, “May I fix your collar for you?”
He didn’t seem uncomfortable. He reiterated that he didn’t have anyone to help him, and he said yes. So I folded his collar down on his neck for him.
It was a personal gesture, but I would want others to do it for me if my tag was hanging out or if I was dragging toilet paper on my heel. Our visitor didn’t seem to mind.
An invitation …
After the service, I asked our visitor if he would come back. He smiled gently and seemed unsure what to say. He repeated that he was a 6th generation Church of Christ. He also said he wanted me to look up a particular song on YouTube. And then he began to sing to me. He sang quietly, unobtrusively. He had a good voice, and the song was rich with meaning. Honestly, it was my turn to feel like our encounter was a bit personal. Did he feel that way when I turned down his collar?
After he sang, I encouraged him again to visit our church. I often tell people to visit at least three times before they decide. I also reiterated that we were there for him, that we have community groups where he would be welcome and that he was not alone. We’d love to visit with him more. He offered me his card — I was expecting a business card — but it simply had a Bible verse and his phone number.
And then we parted ways.
A reminder …
Have you visited a new church recently? Were you greeted and invited to sit with a family? Did anyone ask you if you would return? How did you feel as a visitor?
I remember Rebecca McLaughlin** saying that she and her husband have three rules of engagement when they go to church.
- An alone person in our gathering is an emergency
- Friends can wait
- Introduce a newcomer to someone else
She ended her post with the encouragement that we should all be missionaries at church.
Let’s be missionaries – in church and out. Be the family that shares the joy and pride in their church, inviting others. Be the family that invites guests to sit with them. And if possible – invite them out for Sunday lunch!
Postscript …
PS – The song that our visitor suggested I listen to was an arrangement of Just As I Am – I Come Broken. And it was the song, I Come Broken, that he sang to me. The arrangement is beautiful, acapella, and meaningful!
Reference
McLaughlin, Rebecca [@RebeccMcLaugh]. “My husband has three rules of engagement when we go to church.” Twitter, May 5, 2018, https://x.com/RebeccMcLaugh/status/1125001173570859008
